Railway tie plate



March 18, 1941. H L- RUSHMG 2,235,776

RAILWAY TIE PLATE Filed June' 2, 1938 IIIIlIIIIIII/a I HERSC'HEL LEE RUSHING the tie under these strains and stresses.

Patented Mar. 18, 1941 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE RAILWAY TIE PLATE Herschel Lee Rushing, Nashville, Tenn.

Application June 2, 1938, Serial No. 211,457

4 Claims. (01. 238-305) The present invention relates to tie plates commonly used upon railway ties and upon which the track-rails rest.

The object of the invention is to provide a more eificient tie plate for use at switch crossings, sharp curves and the like where the rails do not cross the tie at right angles but obliquely of the tie, requiring that the direction of the usual rail base engaging shoulders or ribs also extend at the same oblique angles as the rails. At these points where the tie plate of the present invention will be used-the ties, the tie-plates and the rails are subjected to great thrusts and stresses when a load is moving over the rails and particularly so when the load is moving at a relatively high speed. It is desirable, therefore, that the tie plate have as great a bearing upon the tie as possible to give support to the rail and to prevent creeping which will dearrange the rail alignment; and it is also desirable that the tie plate be provided with means which will prevent the splitting of the tie due to the strains and stresses operating on the holding spikes so as to ensure the rigidity of the connection between the rail and It is found that with the ordinary commonly used tie plate the tie is subjected to undue wear and the tie plate of the present invention is designed to increase the longevity of the tie at these points so as to make them more equal or commensurate with the wear occasioned at other points on the tie, thus increasing the life of the tie.

A further object of my invention is to provide the tie plate with a novel type of turntable means which enables the rail to be set at different an-.

gles with respect to the longitudinal axis of the tie as may be desired in use.

For the achievement of the objects and advantages of my invention, such invention consists in whatever is described by or is included within the terms or scope of the appended claims.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of another embodiment of my invention.

Fig. 2 is a like view thereof with parts shown separated.

Fig. 3 is a cross section taken substantially on line 33 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a view in longitudinal section thereof.

In that which I regard, at this time, as a most satisfactory embodiment of my invention to achieve the objects in view, I provide for each rail on a wooden tie, a metal bearing or tie plate ID, that includes a horizontal, flat or substantially flat undersurface, which preferably reaches across the tie H from side to side and rests thereon; said plate may also have two depending side members or flanges l2 which, respectively, extend downward over and in close contact with the two tie sides so that they exert 5 a clamping or squeezing effect on the more or less elastic tie body of the tie, all three parts Ill and I2 being integral. That this clamping or squeezing action may be efficiently promoted, the surfaces of the flanges [2 next the tie sides are inclined inward from the bottom edge to the top plate l0 and the tie sides are correspondingly inclined. The clamping or compacting of the tie plate prevents cracking or splitting to which ties are subject from weather conditions and weight of trains, and thus promotes longevity thereof, It will be seen that a vigorous wedging action will be produced by the tie plate, under the heavy pressure exerted by passing trains; and though the tie plate under each rail will move downward slowly and gradually as time passes, the wedging action and close fit of plate will be exerted throughout the life of the tie.

It will be seen that my tie plate is in reality a section or portion of a channel beam or structural shape, with the stiffness or rigidity under load and ability to resist bending stresses which the vertical flanges impart. The strength thus imparted by the flanges enables the top member to be thinner than the simple flat plate of the 'generally used tie plate and that makes for economy of material.

It is suggested that the thickness of the plate member Ill be about of an inch thick at its center portion or that portion which bears the rail and the remainder thereof about g of an inch thick.

The top member In has a supplemental top plate 32 substantially circular in form which, like a turntable, is rotatably adjustable on the member ID to give the desired angle to the rail base edge-engaging shoulder or rib 33 (one only being usually necessary) formed on the top side of said plate 32. On its under side the turntable 32 has extensive contact with the top of the tie, the top member ID being cut away to provide a circular opening 34 for the purpose. Projecting from the side edges of the plate are opposite flanges 35 concentric with the opening 34 and overlapping the adjacent portion of the tie plate member l0 and reaching to arcuate ribs 36 formed on top of said member ID. The turntable 32 is free to rotate in its position between the arcuate ribs in order to set it at the desired angle and. it may be then! fixed by the usual spikes driven Cal through holes 31 into the cross-tie or otherwise secured, as by welding to the tie plate member I0. The spike holes 3! are positioned in that portion of the turntable which is in contact with the tie and within the opening 34 and are further positioned to have their heads engage the usual side edge of the base of the rail as shown in Fig. '7. Thus, irrespective of the angle at which the turntable 32 may be positioned, within the limits of its movement, the spikes may be driven directly through the openings 31 in the turntable plate 32 into the tie and these spikes are ordinarily found sufiicient for maintaining the assembly in position; although other instrumentalities may be used in connection with the tie plate to prevent its longitudinal movement on the tie.

A segment-shaped extension 38 on the underside of the turntable plays or rocks in a corresponding recess 39, of greater angle, which is a lateral extension at one side of the opening 34 in the top member it], to provide a large and continuous bearing area for the spikes 31a driven through the hole 31. To avoid weakening the latter by the opening 34, a diametrically extending cross bar 3 30 may be left and to clear that crossbar the underside of the turntable has a diametrically extending recess 320 that widens towards each end to allow turning of the turntable over said cross bar. However, when the plate member ill is strong enough without the cross bar, the latter may be omitted.

It will thus be apparent that I have produced an improved tie Plate which, in its combined use with a rail and tie, will protect the wood tie and 1 greatly increase its life, eliminating the present major factor of tie destruction, and in the provision of a novel rail adjusting means in the type of tie plate shown which has downwardly extending side flanges for definitely positioning the tie plate upon the tie and protecting it against splitting.

That which is claimed is:

1. In a tie plate, a plate securable to the top of a tie and having an opening therein whose outer edges described the outer circumference of a circle, upwardly projected arcuate flanges extending from said plate and concentric with and spaced from said opening, a turntable positioned upon said plate between said flanges and having an under-portion extending into said opening in said plate to rest upon the tie, the edges of said turntable andunder-portion thereof engaging said flanges and the edges of said opening respectively; a lateral projection on the turntable extending into a recess in the portion of the tie plate underlying the turntable, and rail base-spike holes extending through the turntable and allowing spikes to be driven directly into the tie and certain of said openings being disposed in said lateral extension whereby the turntable may be held in adjusted positions.

2. In a tie plate, a plate securable to the top of a tie and having an opening therein whose outer edges describe the circumference of a circle, upwardly projected flange means extending from said plate and concentric with and spaced from said opening, a turntable positioned upon the plate between said flanges and having an under-portion extending into said opening upon the plate to rest upon the tie, the edges of said turntable andunder-portion thereof engaging said flanges and the edges of said opening respectively; a reinforcing cross bar extending across said opening and secured to the plate, and the underside of the turntable being recessed to accommodate said cross bar and to allow limited rotative movement of the turntable, and means whereby the turntable may be held in adjusted positions on the plate.

3. In a tie plate, a plate securable to the top of a tie and having a circular opening therein, a rail supporting turntable of greater area than said opening and mounted upon the plate and having an under portion conforming with and extending through said opening to lie flush with the under surface of the plate and to bear directly upon the tie, means on the upper surface of the turntable for positioning the base of the rail thereupon and including rail-base-spike holes extending through portions of the turntable with in the opening in said plate, whereby the turntable may be adjusted to desired angles relative to the tie plate and spikes driven through said spi ke holes into the tie to secure the rail and turntable in adjusted positions and the rail and the tie plate to the tie.

4. The combination with a tie plate, having a top plate member dimensioned to extend from side to side of a tie and having downwardly extending side flanges engaging side portions of the tie; ,of a rail supporting turntable mounted on the plate and cooperating therewith for rotatable movement relative thereto to adjust the rail to desired angular positions with respect to said tieplate, means on the upper surface of said turntable for positioning the rail base thereon and including rail-base-spike holes extending through the turntable, and means in the top plate whereby spikes driven through said holes in the turntable may pass into the tie, when the turntable has been adjusted to any one of several adjusted positions, to secure the turntable in its adjusted position and to secure the rail and the tie plate to the tie.

HERSCHEL LEE RUSHING. 

